


carry on my wayward son ( there will be peace when you are done )

by wearealltalesintheend



Series: to a flat world of changing lights and noise [8]
Category: Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (TV 2016)
Genre: And Blackwing needs to take a chill pill, Bart is restless but it's okay, Canon-Typical Violence, Dirk is kind of tired, M/M, They change their choice so fast it's giving Farah whiplash, Threats of Violence, she will get to murder soon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-14
Updated: 2017-04-14
Packaged: 2018-10-18 16:37:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10620861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wearealltalesintheend/pseuds/wearealltalesintheend
Summary: "In the days that follow, several different things happen with several different people at severel different points in time.It's a jigsaw puzzle and it's almost complete.These are the last pieces."or, alternatively, the beggining of the end.





	

**Author's Note:**

> OKAY SO THIS TOOK FOREVER I KNOW
> 
> But I do have a good reason, my laptop broke down and I only got it to work now, so yeah, sorry. I also managed to get really annoying searching browser virus, but here it is. Finally.
> 
> The title comes from the song _Carry on my wayward son_ by Kansas.
> 
> Go on, enjoy.

In the days that follow, several different things happen with several different people at severel different points in time.

 

 It's a jigsaw puzzle and it's almost complete.

 

These are the last pieces:

 

***

 

  1. _i)_ _Dirk Gently_



 

Dirk finds his current situation quite dismaying. It's been weeks since the kidnapping and there has been much less rescuing happening than he previously thought.

 

And it's not that he's losing faith, he's not, he believes, no, he _knows_ , Todd and Farah must be looking for him, it's just that they have been moving him from cell to cell, and all this constant traveling is bound to be rather difficult to follow. So it's not that Dirk is losing faith, it's just that he's not sure he can do it on his own again.

 

And the worst part is how familiar it feels, how easy it is to fall back into old habits. It's not coming home and it's not nice, but it's not surprising at all.

 

So he does what he can, he talks to the walls, speaks to the guards, and mentally notes to himself things he wants to tell Todd later. He's making a list of them so he won't forget anything later.

 

And as infinity goes both ways, nothing happens only once. There is  buzzing in the air, an itch on his bones; it feels like sixteen years ago and on the edge of something new. There is hope in that.

 

It's been longer than usual, this stop. Dirk overheard the guards talking, they are waiting for others subjects to arrive, there is going to be a _reevaluation._ He is not exactly sure what that means, but it makes him think of red blood spilling on white tiles and the sound of guns going off.

_(Those are the times he huddles closer to the light, and wraps his yellow jacket tighter around himself )_

 

For now, there isn't much Dirk can do but wait, and keep the wariness at bay. It's not all lost yet, he figures, the world is still spinning and he still needs to legally create his Detective Agency and there is _friends_ to go back to; it's more than he had sixteen years ago and a lifeline to cling to.

 

The next time they bring him lunch, Dirk hides the plastic fork on his sleeve. He is not sure why, the fragile thing would break against the first pressure, but he tucks it safely on his jacket anyway.

 

It feels like sixteen years ago, on the edge of something new. _Just a little longer._

 

***

 

  1. _ii) Farah & Vogle_



 

Farah is tired; there is an ache on her neck from sleeping on the passenger seat and her limbs feel sore and heavy, she probably shouldn't be driving but Todd had been up all night and good part of the morning, so it's not really much of a choice.

 

And isn't this her life now? An endless string of choices _but not really_?

 

The afternoon is slowly morphing into night, the sky turning darker as time goes by; it feels like they've been in Wyoming for years. The roads look the same everywhere; there is a tightening in her chest and whispering in the back of her mind, telling her they are running in circles, trapped in an infinite loop.

 

In the passenger seat Todd is dozing off, head lolling against the window, the jostles of the car lulling him to sleep. She sighs, there is worry swimming in her eyes; if Farah pays attention, she can see the myriad of angry red lines sneaking up all over his arms, where less than an hour ago he had been scratching and tearing at his skin, screaming about insects underneath _._

 

A shiver runs down her spine, she grips the wheel until she can't feel her fingers.

 

They are almost out of Wyoming, but there is a fork in the road, and how did the poem go?

 

_( Two roads diverged in a wood and I- )_

 

But as it is, there is no need for hesitation. They have a destination in mind, a straw they are all grasping like a lifeline.

 

" _No!_ The other way," Vogle says suddenly, loudly, leaning from the backseat and pointing, "we gotta take the other way."

 

" _Why?"_ Farah asks because Vogle hadn't been exactly forthcoming with information, and it surprises her into slamming the brakes and the car screeches and the tires burn; there is commotion and chaos, but she fixes the kid with her glare, "Vogle, _why?"_

 

"I don't know," he shrugs, leans back, "we gotta."

 

Farah sighs, looks at Amanda, a question on her eyes, asking _what is going on?_

And Amanda, as the appointed unoficial Rowdy 3 translator that she is, turns to Vogle, a pause, back to Farah, says, "I think he picked a, uh, scent?" Vogle nods, "Yeah, or something."

 

_( I took the one less traveled by, )_

Farah trades a look with Todd, bits her lip and tastes blood. There is a fork on the road and there is choice, but _not really._ She turns on the engine, takes a deep breath, tells Vogle _lead the way._

 

_( And that has made all the difference. )_

 

Farah is tired and her neck is still aching, Wyoming still feels like forever and Todd still looks raw and hollowed out. But Amanda talks excitedly from the backseat and Vogle is grinning and nodding along, and _hope_ feels solid and steady in a way it hadn't felt in days.

 

Farah is tired, but she only needs to drive a little longer.

 

_***_

 

_iii) Bart_

 

Bart knows there is a storm brewing, not so far in the horizon line. The air is dry and there is lightining cracking in the proverbial distance. It's a storm and it's a promise; it's order in the chaos and she is standing in the eye of the hurricane.

 

For now, there is quiet.

 

She paces inside her cell, she bares her teeth and growls and lashes out; she wears every bit of the caged animal she was made to be.

 

There is a growing impatience inside her ribs, a fire burning where her heart should be; Bart is a force of nature, she contains multitudes, she is not meant for cages and leashes and chains.

 

Still, she thinks of Ken and a dozen guns, and so she bids her time, she barks but she restrains herself from biting.

 

  _Soon, it's almost time._

They are taking her through a long hallway. White walls, white doors; the light above flicker, Bart never looks through the glass in the doors.

_Be ready, it's starting.._

The guards look uneasy, they poke her back with their little guns; she laughs.

_Be ready, child_

The lights flicker again, once, twice, and then go out. Darkness falls, Bart stops, turns around.

The soldiers clutch their stupid guns aiming at her.

She smiles.

 

_Now._

The guns fire.

 

_***_

 

All the pieces are laid out, the cards are set on the table. It's all been already set in motion.

 

There has never been a point of no return for any of them; there are many ways around a mathematical equation but only one answer.

 

And if God doesn't play dices, the Universe does count cards.

 

It's the beginning of the end.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, you made it! 
> 
> Leaving a comment or a kudo would be really nice in a way my sleep deprived brain can't really put into coherent sentences right now, but would also be really appreciated.
> 
> You can also come talk with me on[my tumblr](http://www.wearealltalesintheend.tumblr.com).
> 
> And hey? Thanks.


End file.
